Jon Golinger poses for a portrait in Gerke Alley on September 18, 2013 in the Telegraph Hill area of San Francisco, Calif. Golinger is the Water Front Chair of the Telegraph Hill Dwellers.

Photo: Pete Kiehart, The Chronicle

Jon Golinger poses for a portrait in Gerke Alley on September 18,...

Image 2 of 4

Judy Irving, Vedica Puri, Lynn Sanchez and Jon Golinger, members of the Telegraph Hill Dwellers of which Golinger is a past president. Golinger is campaign co-chairman of the Proposition B measure and one of the main public faces for the "yes" side.

Aerial view of the Golden State Warriors proposed arena and neighboring development across the Embarcadero.

Photo: Warriors/Snohetta/steelblue

Aerial view of the Golden State Warriors proposed arena and...

Image 4 of 4

The Golden State Warriors' arena proposal for the San Francisco waterfront includes a 17,500-seat venue on the southeast corner of Piers 30-32, warehouse-like retail buildings along the Embarcadero, and roughly eight acres of terraced parks and plazas in-between.

As it stands now, when San Francisco voters get their guides for the June 3 election, the official opponent listed for Proposition B, a measure to limit high-rise development on the waterfront, will be none other than Jon Golinger.

That would be the same Jon Golinger who is the campaign co-chairman and one of the main public faces for the "yes" side.

No, Golinger didn't have a sudden change of heart. Instead, he finds himself listed as the opponent through a combination of official paralysis, an intimate understanding of the rules and what some called "Nixonian" trickery.

According to Department of Elections Director John Arntz, it is legal. And, barring some kind of intervention, the official argument in the voter guide listed as against Proposition B will actually be in favor of the measure.

Golinger, who is unapologetic, called it "a public service announcement from Jon Golinger."

Unless "there is something that comes up that indicates this cannot happen, this is how it's going to stand," said Arntz, adding that his office's policy was designed to not impinge on free speech rights.

Here's how we got to this point.

If Mayor Ed Lee or a member of the Board of Supervisors opposes a ballot measure, they can automatically become the official opponent listed in the voter guide and be responsible for the official argument against it.

Voter can fill the role

But if there is no elected official in opposition, then registered voters can fill that role. The Department of Elections chooses at random one of the opposition arguments submitted, regardless of what it says, and that person and argument become the official opposition.

No elected official has publicly come out in opposition to Prop. B, which would require voter approval for any development on Port of San Francisco property to exceed existing height limits. Several public officials have questioned the measure, but no one seems to want to be the politician advocating for giving voters less say in city matters. That's not exactly a formula for getting more votes the next time one runs for office, the conventional thinking goes.

That left wide open who would be Prop. B's official opponent. Of the 27 opposition arguments filed, 26 came from Golinger, according to the Department of Elections.

With those kinds of odds, he was a virtual lock to be chosen.

Golinger, who said he handwrote the ballot arguments until his pen went dry, called opponents of the measure, which include construction trade unions, the San Francisco Giants and development interests, "lazy or inept."

"If they fail to follow the rules, then they have no one to blame but themselves," Golinger said, pointing out that they could have done the same thing.

Libertarians did the same

The local Libertarian Party, for example, filed 50 ballot arguments against Proposition A, a $400 million earthquake bond measure on the same ballot. Golinger also said his move was payback after the Democratic County Central Committee, chaired by Jung, on Wednesday voted 13-12 to oppose Prop. B - seven of its 32 members didn't vote at all.

"These are politicians bending to the pressure of powerful developers," Golinger said, describing his tactic as "100 percent within the rules" and a smart move given the wealthy opposition to his group of limited-growth advocates and political progressives that includes the local branch of the Sierra Club.

Vince Courtney Sr., a longtime labor figure involved in San Francisco politics who dropped off at City Hall the argument actually opposing the measure, called Golinger's move "just unethical and an abuse of the process."

"It may not be technically in violation of the law," Courtney said, "but it's kind of sleazy."